Oil prices rise after fresh US strikes on Iran and return of sanctions on Tehran – business live

Almost all major Asian stock markets fall, with Samsung Electronics shares sliding for a second day

European stock markets are sliding, following in Asia’s footsteps. There were modest losses on Wall Street on Tuesday too.

The FTSE 100 index in London has lost 130 points, or 1.2%, to 10,533. The Dax in Frankfurt and the FTSE MiB in Milan both fell 1.1% whiel the CAC in Paris lost 0.9% and the Ibex was down nearly 1%.

The waves of doubt from Asia washed on to US shores, where Samsung Electronics shares had fallen by 7% despite a blockbuster set of numbers. Not only does this bring into question AI valuations alongside an increasingly high bar of expectation, the imminent second quarter earnings season in the US is now primed for the most severe of tests and thus the possibility of widespread disappointment to all but the strongest of profit reports.

The calls are becoming increasingly loud that the levels of capital investment could struggle to produce the productivity gains and profits to justify a decent rate of return, if at all. As such, US markets struggled to make headway as investors sought solace in sectors such as healthcare and financials as the rotation continued, and in the likes of Walmart which announced product price cuts to maintain its domestic dominance.

Although we would welcome some demand-side stimulus we are not anticipating a significant change in open market conditions in the second half, or in early 2027.